May slowly warmed up as the month progressed but still ended up on the cool side of normal. The average temperature for the month was 13.0 degrees Celsius – up from 10.1 C at the start, but still well below the normal of 14.3 C.
In lock step with the rising average temperature, the corn heat unit (CHU) count started on May 16 and reached an accumulation of 267 CHU by the end of the month, which is slightly below normal. Despite the cool start to the cropping season, the rows of corn are emerging across the Valley, the winter wheat is growing in leaps and bounds, and the grasses in the hayfields are beginning to head out. The asparagus is amazing!
There was a total of 70 millimetres of rain during the month, which is also slightly below normal, but as it came in frequent periods of precipitation it seems that it has rained much more than it has.
So far in 2026, the average temperature is now 0.1 C below normal, and precipitation is – despite what seemed like a lot of snow since the new year – 15 per cent below normal. Except for the first few days of June, the forecast for the month is for below-normal temperatures for the daytime highs, with rain or shower activity throughout the month. The forecast for Expo Ormstown calls for highs in the mid-twenties, sunny with cloudy periods and showers – sounds about normal!